Carol Service, Sunday, 23rd December 2012

At 3.00pm on the Sunday immediately before Christmas St. John’s was filled not only with Christmas trees, but also with a large number of people of all ages, all gathered to celebrate the start of Christmas.

The musicians and the choir had each had a brief rehearsal prior to the service which began with Sue O’Donoghue singing the solo first verse of ‘Once in Royal David’s City’.

Jeremy then welcomed everyone and led the opening prayer:

‘At Christmas time we delight again to hear the story of the journey to Bethlehem, the song of the angels, the surprise of the shepherds, and their joy as they found Jesus in the manger.

But lest we forget he was born to poverty, we remember at this season all who are hungry or cold.

And lest we forget he became a refugee, we remember the stranger and the lonely among us.

And lest we forget he felt the pain of life and death, we remember now those who are ill, or anxious, or bereaved.

And because we know he came for our salvation, let us in heart and mind go once again to Bethlehem, to hear the message of the angels and worship afresh the Son of God.’

The familiar story of the nativity was then told in a mixture of Bible readings and carols.  The choir performed two of John Rutter’s carols - The Angel’s Carol and the Star Carol - accompanied by Julie Ann on the organ, and showed how well they had rehearsed during the previous weeks.  

The Sunday GAP children provided lively renditions of four up-beat songs  -  

‘I fly to Bethlehem’, ‘Mary’s Boy Child’, ‘Shepherds Rock’ and ‘The Kings’ Song’, and showed not only their singing skill but also true enjoyment in performing these items.  They certainly had the congregation tapping their feet and smiling.

The congregation also had the opportunity to sing six familiar carols, two of them accompanied by 

the small ad hoc group of musicians.

Jeremy delivered a short epilogue in which he reminded us that really when we celebrate someone’s birthday we are celebrating them becoming older not remaining a baby, and that for us as Christians, the real joy of Christmas is that it marks the beginning of God with us as a human being, culminating in Christ’s sacrifice for each one of us on the cross.

After the service everyone was invited to enjoy mince pies and tea or coffee in the hall; a wonderful way to start Christmas.

Thank you to Christine and Stuart for the text and photos for this blog and also to the visiting cellist, John Cotterill!

Carol Service 2011

It was lovely to see the church so full for the carol service as many people had come together, and worked really hard, to make it the success it was - in the absence of both a vicar and a choir mistress and with the regular choir being temporarily suspended.

An all age, “Special Choir” had been created for the occasion.

They were trained by Julie Ann who, due to the fact that there was not enough time to get everyone together to rehearse very often, had produced CDs, for the various parts, with which individuals could practice on their own. In their black and white they not only sounded fantastic but looked great too.

The service was structured by a reading, in instalments, of the Christmas story by Christine who lead the service.

 

In addition, a special musical ensemble was created to enhance the service which it duly did.

As if all this was not enough, singing from the congregation and the choir was interspersed enthusiastically with lively songs from the young people from GAP.

All these elements, combined with prayers from Andy and a remarkable epilogue from Tim, made this a wonderful service.  Everyone, including the congregation, took part with such passion that it became a truly uplifting experience.

I was particularly impressed by the way the traditional hymns (such as “While shepherds watched their flocks by night”) seemed effortlessly to blend perfectly with more modern songs (such as “the Shepherds Rock”).

Congratulations to everyone who worked so hard to create this service; well done to everyone who attended – between you, you created a most memorable, enjoyable and yet spiritual experience for Christmas!

Carol singing 2010

On Saturday 18th December, the morning after 12 inches of snow had fallen on Birkdale, intrepid members of St. John's joined others from Churches Together in Birkdale to sing carols in "The Village". They sang from 10.45 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. after which Jennings greengrocer kindly supplied them with much needed hot drinks!

Sunday afternoon provided yet another opportunity for singing carols at the St. John's carol service. This was a delight with narrations of the Christmas Story being interspersed with songs from the choir, GAP children and of course congregational carols. The service was particularly evocative in the light of the Christmas trees.

Unfortunately, due to the weather conditions, the planned carol singing in the streets had to be cancelled.

However, all is not lost! There will be another chance to sing carols, by the light of the trees, at the 11.00 p.m. Communion Service on Christmas Eve.

This is the last blog of the year so, may I wish you peace and goodwill this Christmas and throughout 2011!

Thank you to Iain for the photo!